


Many Years of Sunshine Days

by Rune_Vanyarin



Category: 14th Century CE RPF, Richard II - Shakespeare
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-28
Updated: 2014-08-28
Packaged: 2018-02-15 03:08:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 1,145
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2213523
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rune_Vanyarin/pseuds/Rune_Vanyarin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Instead of everybody dying and everything being horrible, a letter recalls an angry Mowbray from across the sea.</p><p>(written for the Histories Ficathon 2014 for Trafalgarslaw's prompt "Everybody lives AU for Richard II, preferably something that allows for Bolingbroke to be relentlessly mocked by everyone ever")</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Scene: A Room in Italy

**Author's Note:**

  * For [TrafalgarsLaw](https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrafalgarsLaw/gifts).



Mowbray eagerly broke the seal of the letter. The first thing he noticed, before he registered the import of the missive, was that it was in English. It had been ages since Mowbray had been able to converse in his native English; even his parrot, Antonio, staunchly refused to learn any of that tounge. Antonio sat on her perch spluttering Italian curses that Mowbray didn't quite understand, but he knew enough to know better than use them in polite company. Occasionally Antonio would repeat snatches from Mowbray's Italian exercises, but despite his best efforts, the wretched bird would speak no English.  
The letter was short, only one line in Green's tidy hand. He'd seen Green's sweeping curved _d_ s and tidy round _g_ s innumerable times before, and would recognise it anywhere. The hand was more hurried than usual, though; "Bolingbroke repeals himself. The King is in danger. Please hurry back. Bring forces."


	2. Scene: A Room in Bristol Castle

The room was large; chilly and dim. The earl of Wiltshire hadn't been expecting guests, and none of the rooms were properly aired or had fresh straw. Green was accustomed to better accommodations, but anything defensible was welcome in these perilous times. Bushy slept peacefully in the oversized bed, and Green worked quietly so as not to wake him. Neither of them had slept the night before for fear and worry, and Bushy had finally fallen asleep in the small hours of the morning. The whole of the castle was habitable, but neither Bushy nor Green had wished to be alone.

Even as he penned the letter, Green could see from the window a far distant metallic shimmer -- the morning sun glinting off Bolingbroke's army.

Calling back Mowbray had been Bushy's idea. It wasn't a very good idea and Green and Wiltshire had rejected it at first. Mowbray himself had been banished, and unlike Bolingbroke, Mowbray would not so blithely go against his king's word, even if he had good cause. But with the King's army in Ireland and so many nobles gone to Bolingbroke's side, they could think of no other possible means. All that was left was to send the letter and pray.


	3. Scene: A Different Beach in Wales

Mowbray sat in the boat just off shore, unwilling to proceed any further. The ships where his French and Italian army waited were small on the sea behind him. One step out of the boat and he would touch English soil and break his vow, disobey the very king he had come to aid. But he was out of alternatives. As bad as it would be to contravene his king’s orders, it’d be far worse to sit idly by while Bolingbroke razed fair England's countryside. If it was his duty to obey the king, it was even more his duty to protect the king. His life would be forfeit for breaking his banishment, but what was his life compared to the safety and comfort of the realm?

  
Mowbray rose to his feet and leapt out of boat into thigh deep sea water and felt the shifting sand of England’s shore beneath his boots. From this moment forth he was no longer his own man. Now he existed only to right England’s wrongs.


	4. scene: A Camp in Wales, overlooking a long stretch of beach

The Welsh army had given up. They were right. The kingdom was in a shambles and the air was full of portents. The Welsh captain had been convinced that the king was dead, and was certain enough in his conviction that Salisbury had begun to doubt. Perhaps the king had met with an ill end in Ireland.  
Salisbury glanced towards the sea. Sails! The king was returned, but too late to recall the Welshmen.

But further south he spied more sails, far closer to the shore than those flying the royal English colours. England was struggling enough under Bolingbroke’s invasion, and would surely collapse under a second invading army.  A single boat had been launched from the ships and was creeping towards the shore. Salisbury mounted his horse and swiftly rode the several miles to the beach to confront the emissaries of the nearer ships. Perhaps shouting at the newcomers would scare them off, and at any rate, he’d have news to bring King Richard once his ships landed.


	5. Scene: The beach, Mowbray's ships visible on the horizon

As Mowbray waded ashore a figure on horseback appeared from behind a knoll. As soon as he was within earshot, he be bellowed, "Who are you and why do you dare upon England's shores?"  
Overjoyed at hearing Salisbury’s familiarly large voice, Mowbray forgot the threat in the  tones and ran up the beach toward the rider. "Salisbury, my friend, how fares the realm?"  
"Worse than you could know. But was your banishment repealed?"  
"No, though I come as a traitor, I come not with traitorous intent. Tell me, is the king well?"  
"The king will have nothing with traitors who repeal their banishments" Salisbury was in a mood to trust no one, and even Mowbray, who he knew to be honest and loyal, was a potential threat to England's peace.  
"I come to right wrongs, not to do them. I had a letter from Bushy and Green informing me that Bolingbroke had repealed his banishment and threatened the king. "  
He handed the letter up to Salisbury, who read it before alighting from his horse.  
"You bring forces to contend with Bolingbroke?"  
"Though my life be forfeit for it"  
"How many strong?"  
"Fourteen thousand. They await my word. I would not have them land if the King did not need them"  
"Oh, thank you, thank you."  Salisbury stepped forward and, much to Mowbray's shock, enfolded him in his arms. "Only yesterday I had an army of twelve thousand Welshmen, but they are fled and it seemed that all was lost.Have your forces land, and let us go meet the king."


	6. Scene: THE beach in Wales

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm terribly sorry, but I only got this far before the ficathon deadline. Expect the last few chapters (and the rest of this one) "soon", and if they don't materialise, bug me about it until they do.

Mowbray and Salisbury approached the stretch of beach where the king had landed, and saw a group of figures, the King, the Duke of Aumerle, the Bishop of Carlisle, and Sir Stephen Scroop, seated in the sand. The King, Richard, was shaking with sobs and Aumerle had his arms about him.  
  
Scroop was speaking with Carlisle in low tones and rose as Mowbray and Salisbury approached. “Have you heard news of  Wiltshire?" he asked eagerly "Or Bushy or Green?”  
"Not I, I only just arrived in England" said Mowbray.  
"Nor I" said Salisbury.  
"Bolingbroke took Bristol castle, burned it to the ground. Wiltshire, Bushy, and Green haven't been heard from since. We know not if they were taken or slain."  
  
Richard gave a loud sob and Aumerle muttered something, trying ineffectually to comfort him.  
  
Mowbray found himself unable to look directly at the king; all the kingship had drained out of him, and he was merely a man. And a frail man, at that. He was seeing inside his ruler's Kingship, and this was not something which was meant to be looked upon.  
  
TO BE CONTINUED  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, Salisbury shows up before Scroop in Shakespeare's text, but Salisbury here was distracted by the Plot Changing Event and so was delayed.

**Author's Note:**

> First off, I should like to offer my apologies to the geography of England. I did everything that Robert Louis Stevenson said not to do when writing a story set in a real place, which is to say I did not consult any maps, nor did I work any arithmetic.
> 
> I haven't given much heed to actual history, either, and my characterisations probably make no sense in a historical context. But even though it's an AU, I've tried not to take too many liberties with Shakespeare's play, aside from changing the plot halfway through. I mean, I tried to weave this story out of the fabric of the play, instead of diverging from the play entirely.
> 
> Sorry about burning down Bristol castle, it was either the castle or Bushy and Green, and this is supposed to be an Everybody Lives AU.
> 
> The fact that Bushy and Green are sharing a room is the result of a concerted effort to make something shippy happen. I do not know how to fandom.
> 
> Except for Salisbury's voice (a reference to SHOUTY SALISBURY of the RSC production), nothing in the story depends upon any one production.  
> If you're curious, though, I had the RSC production in mind for some of this (particularly Mowbray, Bushy & Green, and the aforementioned SHOUTY SALISBURY), the Hollow Crown production for other parts (Richard himself in particular, and I nabbed my visualisations of most of the settings from it), but for a good deal of the story I had no particular production in mind.
> 
> This is baby's first fanfic. It's also baby's first historical fiction that deals in actual persons and events. This is not an excuse, but bragging rights.


End file.
